Building covering



4, 1 5- J. E. BLACK 2,390,348

BUILDING COVERING Filed March 4, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 hza 2/ 20 a 1/ WM1945- I J. E; BLACK 2,390,348

BUILDIKG COVERING 1945- J. 5:; BLAC K 2,390,348

BUILDING COVERING Fil d March 4, 1-944 4 Sheets-Sheet s Dgc. 4, 1945. J.E; BLACK 2,390,348 BUILDING COVERING Filed March 4, 1944 4 Shee ts-Sheet4 ZZZ-(274394- Patented Dec. 4, 1945 BUILDING COVERING James E. Black,Chicago Ill., assignor to James E. Black, Elam L. Black, Whitfield J.Black, and Virginia Black, a partnership doing business as BlackSystems, Chicago, Ill.

Application March 4, 1944, Serial No. 524,984

4 Claims.

My invention relates to building coverings and more particularly toshingles for roofs and side walls,

The principal object of my invention is generally to improve shingles ofthe kind which, when laid, have their exposed-to-the-weather lowerportions attached to concealed upper portions of underlying shingles byclamps that are nailed to such concealed upper portions and extendoutwardly and downwardly through incisions in suchexposed-to-the-weather lower portions.

Other objects of my invention'are to provide shingles of the kindmentioned in the immediately preceding paragraph, which (a) May be cutfrom sheet stock, withoujt waste, with a conveniently located clampdetachably carried by each shingle;

(b) Are so conformed that accidental separation of the clamps from theirrespective shingles, in transit from factory to place of installation,is exceedingly rare; and

(c) Very effectively protect a roof or wall to which they are applieddespite that a very large portion of eachshingle is exposed to theweather.

An advantageous feature of the invention is that each clamp, whendetached from the shingle with which it comes as a unit, leavescentrally of the shingle top a notch which the clamp itself covers whenproperly nailed in position to cooperate with the lower portion of anoverlying shingle.

Other important features of the preferred embodiment of my invention arespaced-apart twopurpose horns constituting the upper corners of eachshingle, one purpose of these horns being to guard against accidentaldetachment of'the clamp, from the shingle in transit to place ofinstallation, and their other purpose being to prevent exposure of a,shingled surface when, due to the wind or other causes, a lower cornerof a shingle is turned up to any degree permitted by the nails and clampwhereby such shingle is held in the building covering whereof it forms apart.

- proved shingles may be cut, without production of waste. from a stripof material suitable for use in building coverings;

Fig. 2 is a plan view'of one of the shingles as it is brought to theplace of installation;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating the clamp detached fromits associated shingle to leave a notch in the central upper portion ofthe shingle;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Figs..2 and 3 illustrating the clampproperly re-positionecl with respect to its associated shingle forcooperation, in a building covering, with the incised lower portion ofan overlying shingle;

Fig. 5 is a plan view .of six courses of a roof or wall coveringcomprising shingles like those depicted in the preceding figures;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view, similar to Fig. 5, il-

lustrating how the shingle horns function to prevent exposure ofthecovered building surface when, due to the wind or other causes, a lowercorner of a shingle curls up to any degree permitted by the nails andclamp whereby such shingle is retained in the building covering;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 2 depicting a first modified form ofthe shingle;

Fig. 8 is a plan view illustrating how the shingles of a second modifiedform are cut, without production of any substantial amount of waste,from a strip of suitable material;

Fig. 9 is a, plan view of a shingle of such modified form, as it isbrought to the place of installation;

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 9 illustrating the clamp detached fromits associated shingle to leave a notch in the central upper portion ofthe shingle; v

Fig. 11 is a, view similar to Figs. 9 and 10 iilustrating the clampproperly re-positioned with respect to its associated shingle for'cooperation, in a building covering, with the incised lower portion ofan overlying shingle;

Fig. 12 is a plan view of five courses oi roof or wallcovering formedby, shingles of the kind depicted in Figs. 8 to 11; I

Fig. 13 is a phantom view illustrating how each clamp overlies the notchoccasioned by its detachment from its associated shingle and how eachclamp cooperates with the incised lower portion of a shingle of thenext, higher course; and

Fig. 14 is a view similar to Fig. 11 illustrating a different placementof the clamp with respect to the shingle notch.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views.

Referring to Fig. 2, the shingle i5 is formed of any preferredwater-proof Weather-resistingsheet material suitable for use in buildingcoverings. It has parallel side edges, a lower edge at right angles tothe side edges, and an irregular second i top edge defining the uppercorner horns l6-I8,

the clamp ll of inverted T-shape, and the clamp embracing lugs Ill-l8.The horns IG-IB and lugs l8-l8 are permanent parts of the shingle, butthe clamp I1 is severed from the lugs Iii-l8 and is readily detachablefrom the shingle at the scored, or intermittently incised, line l9. Atits central lower portion the shingle is provided with a U-shapedincision 20, providing a depending flap 2|.

As illustrated in Fig. 1, shingles as just described may be cut from along strip of building 4 material without any waste whateverintermediate the first and last shingles derived from the strip. In.Fig. 1 all solid lines within the bound.- aries of the strip representcontinuous severances, while the broken lines indicate scoring orintermittent incisions. It will be noted that the strip is convertedinto two rows of reversely disposed shingles that each horn 16 of eachshingle in each row is severed from a horn i6, a clamp l1 and lug I8 ofa contiguous shingle in the other row; that the clamp I1 of each shinglein each row is severed from the horn l6-l6 of two conwith the loweredges of shingles moderately overlapping the top edges of alignedshingles in the second lower course.

In Fig. 6 the horns Iii-l6 of the shingles 15 have been stippled so thattheir important functions in the building covering readily may beunderstood.

The first shingle laid upon the starting strip (the starting strip-notshown-being a wellknown strip of building covering material laid alongthe eave of a roof or the lower edge of a wall) consists of properlyspaced-apart short shingles 15a, these short shingles being hingles l5that have had their lower portions cut, away along the lines i5b. Theyare retained by large headed nails 22-22 that are so located as to beconcealed and protected by the lower corners of the shingles l5 of thesecond course.

' As an incident to the laying of each shingle l5a its clamp I"! isplucked from the embrace of its lugs l8-l8, as. indicated in Fig. 3, andis repositioned upon the shingle with the upper edge (formerly the loweredge) of the clamp aligned with the top edges of lugs lB-IB, with thelateral edges of the larger upper portion of the clamp aligned with theparallel edges of the lugs, and with the clampcovering the notch 23occasioned by the removal of the'clamp from the embrace of the lugs.Fig. 4, which happens to illustrate a complete shingle l5, depicts howthe clamp ll of each shingle is re-positioned upon the shingle. Theclamp is then secured, where re-positioned as just explained, by a pairof large headed nails 24-24.

Clamps I'Ia, for cooperation with shingles i5 of the second course, arethen appropriately located and secured, by wide headed nails 24-24,between the starting or short shingles l5a, these clamps lla merelybeing clamps that have been removed from shingles reserved for uppermostcourses. a

The shingles l 5 of the second course have their lower edges in linewith the lower edges of the short shingles l5q. Such second courseshingles are laid as follows: The incision 20 of each shingle is causedto receive from beneath the downwardly extending leg of one of theclamps "a; the lower margins of the incisions are drawn up snugly underthe clamp legs; the shingles are secured by a pair ofnails 22-22 solocated as to be concealed and protected by the lower corners of theshingles I5 01 theth'ird course; and the clamps ll of such second courseshingles are plucked therefrom, appropriately re-positioned thereon, andsecured thereon, and to the building surface being covered, by a pair ofnails 24-24.

Subsequent courses of the shingles l5 are similarly laid, and milled inposition with the central lower part of each shingle being held by aclamp ll associated with an aligned shingle of a lower course.

Each shingle is retained in the building covering of which it forms apart by one clamp I! (or Ha in th case of the second course shingles),four nails 22 and two nails 24. While two nails 24 are employed on eachclamp, one will sufilce if located approximately midway between thepositions of the nails 24-24 of each pair shown in the drawings.

Centrally of Fig. 3 I have depicted the maximum upward curl or fold thata lower cornerof any shingle l5 may take, under the influence of thewind or other causes, without disrupting the anchorages of such shingle.It is a curl or fold occurring on a line extending upwardly andlaterally from the clamp anchorage of the shingle to the anchoragerepresented by one of the first two nails 22-22 driven through it. Sucha maximum upward curl or fold of a lower corner of any shingle above thefirst two courses will not expose any part of the building surface beingshingled, because of a horn l6, of an aligned lower course shingle,underlyin and overlapping the line of the curl or fold. The startingstrip (not shown) prevents exposure of the shingled surface if a lowercorner of a first or second course shingle similarly is curled or foldedupwardly. a

For the convenience of workmen applying the shingles, it is veryimportant that the clamps be very readily plucked from, forre-positioning upon, their respective shingles. This means that blowssustained by the clamps, while the shingles are in transit from thefactory to place of installation, are veryapt to separate the clampsfrom the shingles. The location of each clamp between two horns l6affords it adequate protection in transit when the shingles are properlypackaged. Proper packaging consists, for example, in stacking theshingles in symmetrical superposed relationship, and securely retainingthem between relatively stiif top and bottom boards having lengths andbreadths not less than the corresponding dimensions of the shingles. Thepresence of the horns l6-I6 plus the circumstance that the shinglematerial is directly continguous to each clamp on three sides thereof(see Fig. 2), also aiiords each clamp great protection while theshingles are being normally hiandled, separately or otherwise, prior toinstallat on.

In some instances it will be feasible to dispense with the clampembracing lugs lB-Hi despite their important advantages in guardingagainst accidental separation of the clamps from the shingles and ingauging the re-positioning of the clamps upon the shingles when layingthe latter. A shingle from which the lugs |3-,-|8 have been omitted isdepicted in Fig.3. When the clamp ll of this shingle is detachedtherefrom and repositioned thereon, the separated edges of the clamp andshingle are brought into registry, the leg portion of the clamp extendsdownwardly, and the clamp is disposed midway between the horns |6-|6.

, In Figs 8 to 141 have illustrated how certain features of my inventionmay be applied to shingles of a type that appear to be hexagonal whenincorporated in a building covering although they actually have morethan six sides.

Referring to Fig. 9, the shingle 30, being generally octagonal with someof its sides shorter than others, is provided in its lower portion withthe U-shaped incision 3| aifording the depending flap 32. At its topsuch shingle carries a readily detachable T-shaped clamp 33 that isbounded on seven sides by directly contiguous edges of the shingle.

In laying this shingle, its clamp 33, upon being detached to leave thenotch 34 (Fig. 10). is preferably positioned upon the shingle completelyto cover the notch and to have its upper (formerly lower) edge alignedwith the tips of the lugs 35-45 (Fig. 11) although an alternative mannerof re-positioning the clamp upon the shingle is to have the upper edgeof the clamp aligned with the lower ends of the parallel sides of thelugs 35-35 (see Fig. 14).

Figure 8 illustrates how shingles of the kind depicted in Fig. 9 may becut from a long strip of building material with but very little waste.In Fig. 8 all solid lines within the boundaries of the strip representcontinuous severances, while the broken lines indicate scoring orintermittent incisions. The strip is converted into two rows of shingles30, with the clamp 33 of each shingle being severed from two contiguousshingles and from the clamp of a third contiguous shingle. The smalltriangles 36 represent the only material wasted.

When incorporating the last described shingles into a building covering,a plurality of appropriately placed and spaced short shingles 30a are-secured by the large headed nails 31-31, shingles 30a being merelyshingles 30 that have had their lower portions severed therefrom alongthe lines priately laid with their slits 3| cooperating with the clamps33a; the third course shingles 30 are appropriately laid with theirslits 3| cooperating with the clamps 33 of the first course shingles;the fourth course shingles 30 are appropriately laid with their slits 3|cooperating with the clamps 33 of the second course shingles, etc. Itwill be observed that each shingle is retained in the building coveringby four nails 31 and two nails 33, and that each clamp 33 or 3311 islocated between and in contact with short vertical sides of shinglesnext above the course in which is located the particular shingle towhich such clamp is nailed.

At all times prior to the installation of the shingles 30, their clamps33 are protected against accidental separation therefrom because eachshingle lies in immediate edgewise contact with a plurality (preferablyseven)' of sides -of its associated clamp.

Having thus illustrated and described my invention in several of itspreferred embodiments, what I claim as new and desire to secure byLetters clamp-forming member having a minor area lying within andprotectively snugly embraced by the upper central portion of the bodyand a major area lying outside of and extending upwardly away from thebody. and means integrally joining and firmly anchoring the clampformingmember to the body at a line of severance within the body, permittingdetachment of the clamp-forming member and its complete emergence fromthe body readily to be effected by the fingers of a workman grasping theaforesaid major area, with the resulting provision in the body of a coverecess covered and concealed by the clamp-forming member when it isappropriately repositioned and secured same surface out against theouter surface of the body for entry into the clamp-receiving incision ofa higher course similar shingle unit.

2. A shingle unit of sheet-like material comprising a body having aclamp-receiving incision in its lower central portion, a clamp-formingmember occupying the plane of the body, the clamp-forming member havinga minor area lying within and protectively snugly embraced by the uppercentral portion of the body and a major area lying outside of andextending upwardly away from the body, a pair of spaced apart hornsintegral with, the body extending therefrom upwardly as high as theuppermost portion and on opposite sides of the clamp-forming member,opposed edges of the horns converging from the tips thereof downwardlyto points adjacent the minor area of the clamp-forming member, and meansintegrally joining and firmly anchoring the clamp-forming member to thebody at a line of severance within the body permitting detachment of theclamp-forming memher and its complete'emergence from the body readily tobe effected by the fingers of a workman grasping the aforesaid majorarea, with the resulting provision in the body of a cove recess coveredand concealed by the clamp-forming member when it is appropriatelyrepositioned and secured same surface out against the outer surface ofthe body for entry into the clampreceiving incision of 'a higher coursesimilar shingle unit.

3. A shingle unit, cuttable in quantities practically without waste froman elongated strip of roofing material having a width substantially lessthan twice the overall height of the unit, comprising: a body havingparallel side edges, a bottom edge at right angles to said side edges, aclamp receiving incision in the lowe central portion of the body, a paiof spaced apart horns integral with and rising from the upper corners ofsaid body, a .clamp forming member of inverted T 'shape rising from 'thecentral upper portion of the body, and means integrally detachalilyJoining the lower edge of said member with the body, said horns havingopposed edges converging symmetrically downwardly to points ad-. inventthe lower edge of the member, the horns having other edges divergingdownwardly, each of said last-mentioned edges presenting stepscomplementary to two horizontal edges and two vertical edges of themember.

4. A shingle unit cuttable in quantities with very little waste from anelongated strip of roofing material, comprising: a body having two pairsof long straight sides of equal length and three short straight sides ofequal length, the long straight sides of each pair being parallel toeach other and at right angles to those oi. the other pair, each shortstraight side connecting adjacent ones of the long straight sides, twoof said short straight sides being parallel with each other and at rightangles to the third, said third short straight side constituting thelower edge of the body, and a clamp-receiving incision near 'meansintegrally joining the clamp-forming member to thpbody for detachment ata line of severance lying within the body.

' JAMES BLACK.

